Clamp



Och 18 1927' H, J. MUEHLEMAN CLAMP Filed July 25, 1926 ,.@umlll INVENTRf7 @www Patented Oct. 18, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY J'. MUEHLEMAN, OF HAMILTON, ONTARIO, CANADA.

CLAMP.

Application led July 23, 1926. Serial No. 124,427.

ductivity between the two conductors andv in which the connectionbetween the conductors will be of great security, and which at the sametime will be simple to manufacture and easy to place in position.

I attain'myrobject by formlng my clamp of a pair of clamping membersbetween which the ends of the conductors are secured, and usually,though not necessarily,

a spacing member which is positioned between the conductors. In caseswhere the conductors are formed of different metals, for instance, oneof aluminum, and the other of copper, one half of the spacing member andone of the clamping members w11l be formed of or lined with metalsimilar to one conductor and the other half of the spacing member. andthe other clamping member will be formed of or lined with metal similarto the other conductor.

For clamping the parts together, I find that the tightest joint isobtalned by forming lugs on one clamping member and passing U-boltsaround the back of the other clamping member, the legs of the U-boltspassing through holes formed in the lugs on the other memberA and havingnuts screwed thereon.

The construction is hereinafter more speciically described andillustrated in the accompanying drawings in` which Fig. 1 is an endelevation of my improved clamp;

Fig. 2 a side elevation of the same;

Fig. 3 an end elevation of a modified form of spacing member; and

Fig. 4 an end elevation of a further modified form of spacin member.

In the drawings li e numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts,in the diHerent figures. y

1 and 2 are the conductors to be connected, the conductor 1 beingformed, for example, of copper, and the conductor 2 of aluminum.

These conductors are placed one at each side of a spacing bar 3, whichis formed with opposite faces grooved for receiving the conductors. Atthe other side of each of the conductors are placed grooved members 4and 5.

In order that I may have a good electrical contact between theconductors and the spacing bar and grooved members, I preferably formthe grooves of V-form so that there will be a two-1ine contact betweeneach conductor and the adjacent parts of the clamps as shown in Fig. 1,instead of a single line contact as would be the case if the conductortouched the bottom of the groove and the groove slightly larger than theconductor as is often the case.

In order to clamp the parts together to form a secure and effectivejoint, I form on the grooved member 4 lugs 6 havin holes formed thereinfor the passage of egs of U-bolts 7. The back of the grooved member 5 ispreferably formed with a longitudinal strengthening rib 5 provided wlthindentations or grooves forming lsaddles to receive the, U-bolts, thuspreventing slipping of the latter. Transverse ribs 5b are formed inalinement with the saddles to strengthen the member 5 and support theU-bolts. By screwing up nuts 8 on the legs of the U-bolts tightlyagainst the lugs 6, a very tight connection may be obtained.

It will be understood, of course, that the parts of the clamp may be ofany desired length and also that any desired number of U-bolts may beemployed.

The spacing member shown in Fig. 1 is intended for one heavy and onelight cable.

In Fig. 3 I show a modification of the spacing member which is adaptedfor use with two heavy cables, while in Fig. 4 1' show a modification ofthe spacing member which is adapted for use with two li ht cables. Itwill be noted, however, y t at where a light cable is employed, thespacing member is bevelled oil to each side as at l() to enable thespacing member to be received in the grooved member 4 or 5 as the casemay be.

What I claim is:

In a clamp for connecting electricalv conductors, the combination of anupper grooved member having a 1o 'tudinal rib on its upper member, saidlower member havin back provided with mdentations therem lugs thereonprovided with holes throng forming a. saddle; a U-bo1t adapted to passwhich the legs of the U-bolt are adapted to l0 around the said memberand to sit in the pass.v 4

I saddle; transverse ribs in alinement with the Si ned at Hamilton,Ontario, Canada, this indentations, a lower grooved member, the 8th ayof July, 1926. groove whereof faces the groove of said HENRY J.MUEHLEMAN.

